High mileage, lots of rust but runs like new. What to do?

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jlthompsonn

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May 16, 2014
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Cleveland
I just bought a 2000 Expedition XLT 4.6 4x4 from my brother (I know... Mistake #1: buying and selling cars amoung family. Especially since I've seen how hard he was on it.). At first glance it's a pretty nice truck. But look a little closer and you notice the rust in most the common problem areas (doors and rockers mostly). Look even closer and you notice the odometer. And after counting all those numbers before the decimal point, you realize you didn't read it wrong. 200,067 miles. (Mistake #2: 200k plus mileage and I'm buying it?) Yikes! Then you realize it has the 4.6 liter, which seems to be the longer lasting of the 2 (well, I came to that realization being a counterman at a late model salvage/junk yars for the last 5 years. I've sold ten 1st gen 5.4 liters for every one 4.6 liter). Then I took it for a ride. Right away I notice the check engine light is NOT on. 200k and the light isn't on? Must have burned out, right? Just as I feel it shift perfectly through every gear he tells me it just passed ohio emissions check and the 4x4 works as it should with no problems. So now I'm interested. Interior is perfect, no check engine lights, no exhaust leaks, and it drives like it has under 100k on it. So, for $1,000 I now own a black 2000 Ford Expedition XLT with a 4.6 v8 and 4x4 (A4wd) with rusty rockers & doors, 200,067 miles and a leaking gear box. (Which stopped leaking with a bottle of stop leak. But for how long? I know, I know. Seal kit $18.)


Now, what do I do with it?

Fix all the rust and spray it? Too many miles on it to fix all the body work the correct way and expect it to be worth half of what that's going to cost. Right?

Lift it, slap some 35's on it and make it into a nice looking off road truck? Or is it too big? It is where i offroad. But i just don't know...

Or, I don't do anything at all and just drive it. Of course I changed the oil, dumped some injector cleaners and treatments in the tank along with $91.00 of 93 octane fuel and a few other product from my local auto parts store. But it's not in my blood to leave it stock. I'm itching to do something to it and now!

Any ideas or suggestions would be greatly appreciated. But, if I know me I'm going to throw all rationalization out the window and dump way to much money into a high mileage expedition with lots of rust when I could have bought a clean one for half the price.

Please help!





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bedrck46

Guest
for the $1000.00 you paid for it I doubt that you could have found "a clean one for half the price".

Check with your brother and find out what maintenance has been done plugs wires filters etc.

One thing I would do being it has the 4.6 is to pull the throttle body and clean the EGR passage's as they tend to get clogged Unless you find that it has been recently done.
 
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